It’s a snap: State program allows low-income families to ‘double up’ on SNAP benefits for local produce

Children need three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit per day, said Eric Aakko, the spokesman for Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment. For adults, it’s more general: five servings of produce.

County data shows about 90 percent of Weld’s children aren’t getting that, Aakko said. It’s a little better for adults: 1 in 3 are meeting their daily recommendation.

Where to go

Greeley’s farmers market starts at 7:30 a.m. and runs until noon every Saturday in the summers at 902 7th Ave.

From November until to April, that cuts down to every first and third Saturday, and the market will be at Zoe’s Café, 715 10th St.

For more information on Cooking Matters classes, go to click here or call (970) 400-2382.

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A new state program aims to use local farmers markets to make living healthy on $4.50 per day a little easier.

Colorado kicked off Double Up Food Bucks this year. It allows residents using the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — or SNAP — to make their dollars go further when buying fresh local produce.

The program uses a federal grant to match SNAP users dollar for dollar at farmers markets up to $20. It applies only to Colorado-grown fruits and vegetables.

"The state did a scan with low-income populations throughout the state to see what some of their barriers were with healthy eating," said Kelly Campbell, the health communications supervisor at the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment. "The biggest issue was fruit and vegetables."

They're perceived to be expensive, and they're hard to access, she said.

Participating farmers markets will have information stands where SNAP users can drop by and ask about the project.

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"Not every farmers market in the state participates, but Greeley's farmers market does," Campbell said.

Greeley's farmers market is downtown at the Union Pacific Depot, 902 7th Ave., on Saturday mornings. The city has been a leader in trying to bridge the access gap for low-income residents, said Deb Deboutez, who heads the farmers market program for Greeley.

Before Double Up Food Bucks started, she said, the city sponsored a similar program.

"One of our missions is to bring Colorado fresh food to all people, especially low-income people," she said. "In grocery stores, that can be one of the most expensive" things to buy.

It can be tough to invest in healthy food, said Eric Aakko, a spokesman for the health department. For example, he said, a dollar can buy a 2-liter of soda, or it can buy four bananas. Obviously the bananas are healthier, but they don't seem to last as long.

In addition to expense, some residents have a hard time getting their hands on fresh produce because of distance. In the middle of cities or out in disconnected rural areas, people often don't have supermarkets, Aakko said.

"Trying to find fruits and vegetables, that might not exist in a corner gas station," he said.

Once expense and access have been addressed, there can still be another problem.

"You have to know what to do with the healthy foods," Aakko said. "A lot of people have lost the ability to cook. We rely far too heavily on fast food and processed food."

Double Up Food Bucks doesn't address the last problems, but one of the program's sponsors, Cooking Matters, does.

Cooking Matters offers shopping and cooking classes to low-income families. In addition to Double Up Food Bucks, the organization has partnered with the Weld County health department to put on local classes.

During the program's first year, few retailers have joined the program — only four statewide, and none in Weld.

But organizers plan to expand that in the next few years of the grant, Campbell said.

"It's going to be fun to see all the different entities that are going to be able to participate," she said.

How much is enough?

Children need three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit per day, said Eric Aakko, the spokesman for Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment. For adults, it’s more general: five servings of produce.

County data shows about 90 percent of Weld’s children aren’t getting that, Aakko said. It’s a little better for adults: 1 in 3 are meeting their daily recommendation.

Where to go

Greeley’s farmers market starts at 7:30 a.m. and runs until noon every Saturday in the summers at 902 7th Ave.

From November until to April, that cuts down to every first and third Saturday, and the market will be at Zoe’s Café, 715 10th St.

For more information on Cooking Matters classes, go to click here or call (970) 400-2382.